Month: December 2022

December 3, 1960 – Bobby Vee, Bob Crewe, and Damita Joe are on “Saturday Prom.” #ROCkabillyHop #RocHop #OTD #RockNRoll #BobbyVee #SaturdayProm
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December 3, 1959 – Bobby Darin appears on “The Big Party,” hosted by Douglas Fairbanks, Jr. “The Big Party” was short-lived CBS series that featured an informal gathering of celebrities milling around, chatting, and performing around an old piano in the penthouse “home” of a personality (in reality, episodes were filmed at CBS Studio 52 in New York.) #ROCkabillyHop #RocHop @bobby_darin2 #BobbyDarin #OTD #RockNRoll
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December 3, 1955 – Elvis Presley’s first release on RCA Victor Records was announced. The first two songs “Mystery Train” and “I Forgot to Remember to Forget” had been purchased from Sam Phillips of Sun Records. Elvis was described by his new record company as “The most talked about personality in recorded music in the last 10 years.” #ROCkabillyHop @ElvisPresley #Elvis #TCB #theKing @sunrecords ‏#SunRecords #MysteryTrain #RocHop #OTD #RockNRoll
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December 2, 1957 – Al Priddy, a disc jockey at the Portland, Oregon, radio station KEX, is fired for playing the Elvis Presley version of “White Christmas,” which the station has banned, their program manager saying it “desecrates the Spirit of Christmas and transgresses the composer’s intent.” The story makes national news, but it turns out to be a brilliant publicity stunt, Priddy is back on the air two weeks later, with the station claiming letters were pouring in to support the DJ. As part of the stunt, Priddy recorded the GM calling to “fire” him for playing the song and played the conversation on his show before he left. #ROCkabillyHop @ElvisPresley #Elvis #TCB #theKing #WhiteChirstmas #RocHop #OTD #RockNRoll
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December 2, 1955 – Eddie Crandall writes to “Pappy” Dave Stone, radio station KDAV manager, asking for exclusive rights to help Buddy Holley obtain a recording contract. Crandall sends Stone a telegram asking that Holley and his group send him a recording of four original songs. @buddyholly #ROCkabillyHop #buddyholly #TheCrickets #RocHop #OTD #RockNRoll Source: @BuddyHollyCtr
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December 1, 1958 – The Teddy Bears were at #1 on the US singles chart with “To Know Him is to Love Him.” The title of the Phil Spector song came from words on his father’s tombstone. It holds the #1 spot for three weeks. #ROCkabillyHop #PhilSpector #TeddyBears #OTD #RockNRoll #RocHop #ToKnowHimIsToLoveHim
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December 1, 1956 – One of the first rock movies, “The Girl Can’t Help It,” opens in America. Featuring performances by Little Richard, Eddie Cochran, Gene Vincent, The Platters, and Fats Domino, the film stars Jayne Mansfield as an aspiring singer. #ROCkabillyHop #LittleRichard #EddieCochran #GeneVincent #ThePlatters #FatsDomino @littlerichard_ @EddieCochran_ @RealFatsDomino #RocHop #OTD #RockNRoll
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December 1, 1938 – Rock ‘n roll drummer Sandy Nelson is born in Santa Monica, California. Aside from being a session drummer on such tunes as the Teddy Bears’ “To Know Him Is To Love Him,” he released a string of Top 40 instrumental hits, including “Teen Beat” which hit #4 in 1959. He also worked with a number of other acts, including Gene Vincent. At the end of 1963, Nelson was in a motorcycle accident. The injuries necessitated the amputation of his right foot and part of that leg, nonetheless, Nelson continued to record and play drums. #ROCkabillyHop #SandyNelson #TeenBeat #HappyBirthday #RocHop #OTD #RockNRoll
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